A Deputy Surveyor of the King's woods found that the owner of a mill had chopped down the King's trees in Weare, New Hampshire. He informed the sheriff, and on April 13, 1772, the Sheriff and his deputy rode into Weare. The pair arrived to collect the fine from the mill owner, a prominent member of the community, under threat of imprisonment. It was late when the sheriff and logger met; both agreed to meet again in the morning to settle the fine then. The sheriff and deputy rested the night while the logger made other arrangements.
The logger and his peers might have been up all night, possibly hyped up on high-grade cameillia sinensis, tea, for the crew of loggers disguised themselves with coal-blackened faces and armed themselves with switches made of pine branches and went to the inn where the sheriff slept. Just before daybreak they woke him up with beating. When the deputy tried to help the sheriff, they beat him too. They strung the two up, cut the hair off of their horses and sent them out of town on their devalued steeds. Known as the Pine Tree Riot, a white pine tree stands in the area commemorating the event. Eight men of Weare were identified through their thin disguises and were eventually caught, tried, and, to the disdain of the sheriff, ordered to pay a small fine.
Months later, in May 1773, the Tea Act was passed. This gave the Company a monopoly on tea in the Colonies and eliminating some of the Company's costs. The Tea Act made tea more affordable to the colonists, but it also gave the Company monopolization of the product. The Company needed money and the profit of tea was immense.
The Company monopolized tea to increase their power and maintain their grip. At the time, the Company was facing financial troubles and needed an income boost. The recent costs of the French and Indian War (also known as the Seven Years' Wars and The War of Conquest, among other names, fought in 1756), along with rampant starvation in the Asian Colonies, financially devastated the Company. The French and Indian War was fought all around the world, but was concentrated in the Americas, over its resources.
FACT: George Washington and those under his command fired the first shots of the French and Indian War. George was known as a bold and impulsive young officer. The British and Natives fought the French and other Natives for seven years. George hoped to become a British officer for many years. When the promotion did not come, he became a farmer, until the Revolutionary War.
The British Empire owned South Asia and had virtually removed the French, the major alternate empire, from the Americas. Monopolization was instituted and expanded. Some people grew dissatisfied and expressed their dissatisfaction in terms the powers would understand. At times patriots defy law to directly and symbolically express, "no more, shove off." Exploitation instigated people to throw boat-loads of perfectly good tea into the sea to express exactly that.
Rebellion, civil disobedience and nonviolent dissent arrived to Boston Harbor. In addition to the exploitation of the King and the Company, other events precluded the big steep with the same sentiment as the Pine Tree Riot. People remembered the Boston Massacre, which occurred three years prior. Five colonists were shot and killed by British soldiers; six others were injured and survived.
The Boston Massacre started over an unpaid wig bill. Words were exchanged, snowballs were tossed and the situation escalated. The event was marked by capitalizing on the situation to stir up more resentment of the soldiers, who were already seen as bullies by many. The Boston Massacre was used to influence how people perceived events. Paul Revere was involved in the antiestablishment propaganda producing a famous engraving of the Boston Massacre. John Adams defended the English soldiers in court and later became President of the U.S.A., believing in the right to a fair trial no matter what.
Overt oppression was increasingly perpetuated on the Colonists, who believed they had the rights of English people. Boston was especially rebellious and problematic for the authorities. The Boston Massacre was a small massacre compared to the massacres of indigenous people at the time. These massacres were conducted on an exponential scale and labeled expansion, battles, theft, treaty violations, and many names other than massacre and murder. Language is key to the presentation.
Paul was possibly present at the tea toss and an Adams family member, Samuel Adams, may have assisted in planning the event. The Boston Tea Party wasn't only about tea; there was an array of transgressions precluding and surrounding. There were mounting questions concerning colonial exploitation and repression. Tea became the catalyst symbol.
The original patriots planned their protest, their defiance, their civil disobedience, perhaps while drinking tea at the Green Dragon Tavern, in Boston. It would be against the law, but no violence and no thievery was part of the plan. It was a protest and not meant to advance anything except statement. There would be destruction, but no violence. There would be drama and insult, but no theft, no harm.
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